Summary
Highlights
Kerala has witnessed numerous environmental movements driven by its political awareness. The Silent Valley agitation (1978-80) marked the beginning of this environmental consciousness, protesting against a dam project on the Kuntippuzha river in the Silent Valley evergreen forest of Palakkad. Led by environmental activists and writers, it successfully halted the hydroelectric project and spurred a significant environmental debate in Kerala.
The Chaliyar agitation was a four-decade-long popular protest against industrial pollution. The Gwalior Rayons factory, established in Mauvur village along the Chaliyar river in 1961 to address economic backwardness and unemployment in Malabar, began polluting water and air. Chemical gases and carbon dust destroyed crops and caused widespread respiratory diseases. Led by K.A. Rahman from 1962 and later strengthened by the Kerala Sasthra Sahithya Parishad in 1977, the movement fought for the right to live in a healthy environment.
The Plachimada agitation, which began in 2002, opposed the establishment of a Coca-Cola beverage plant by Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Private Limited in Perumatty Panchayat, Palakkad. Excessive groundwater usage and hazardous chemical waste from the factory caused severe environmental problems, depleting biodiversity and leading to health issues and water scarcity. Led by Mylamma, the local residents' protests ultimately succeeded, and the company ceased operations by 2006.
The Endosulfan tragedy, a result of unscientific pesticide application in cashew plantations in Kasargod district since 1976, caused severe genetic disorders and cancer among the exposed population. Following the intervention of then opposition leader V.S. Achuthanandan, Endosulfan was banned in Kerala in 2001. Though the ban was temporarily lifted in 2002, activists like Leelakumari Amma and Mohankumar fought relentlessly. Leelakumari Amma's legal battle led to a temporary ban on aerial spraying in 2001 and a permanent ban by the High Court in 2003, with the Kerala government officially banning Endosulfan in 2004.
The video highlights notable environmental activists: John C. Jacob (pioneered nature conservation in colleges, founded the Zoological Club and SEEK); Sugathakumari (poet and environmentalist, prominent in Silent Valley agitation); A. Achyuthan (elevated environmental activism to a political philosophy, influential in Kerala Sasthra Sahithya Parishad); M.K. Prasad (advocated sustainable development intertwining environment and science); Mylamma (leader of the Plachimada protest); Kallen Pokkudan ("Mangrove Man," dedicated to mangrove conservation and propagation); Leelakumari Amma (key figure in the Endosulfan ban); Shobheendran (teacher, activist, and artist promoting ecological harmony); and Dr. Latha (prominent in the Chalakudy River Protection Council, campaigned against the Athirappilly project).